UCampaign

Last updated

uCampaign, the operating name of Political Social Media LLC, [1] is a Washington-based web development startup that produces apps for United States Republican campaigns. [2] The company has produced apps for dozens of right-wing campaigns and organizations, including: Maryland Governor Larry Hogan, the Republican National Committee, the Family Research Council, [2] the National Rifle Association, and Senator Rand Paul. [1] uCampaign produced similar apps for President Donald Trump (known as America First) and the primary campaign of Senator Ted Cruz. [3] [1] News organizations raised privacy concerns over how the apps collected broad user data beyond the apps' stated purpose. [4] [5] Outside of the United States, their apps are used by conservative political parties and anti-abortion groups in Australia, Canada, and Europe, [2] including an app in support of Brexit. [1] uCampaign charges a single fee for the base app and monthly maintenance thereafter. [2]

Their apps use concepts from video games to induce users towards specific actions with badges, points, and social recognition as rewards, a concept known as gamification. For example, in uCampaign's National Rifle Association app, the player is awarded points for sending messages to elected officials. [6]

The company's chief executive, Thomas Peters, is a Catholic blogger and former web developer. He founded the company in 2014 from his earlier experiences working as a conservative activist in 2012 and frustrations at the success of the Obama campaign's digital campaigning. Peters received $150,000 in seed funding from Sean Fieler, a hedge fund president and prominent donor to Conservative organizations. [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ted Cruz</span> American politician (born 1970)

Rafael Edward Cruz is an American politician, attorney, and political commentator serving as the junior United States senator from Texas since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Cruz was the solicitor general of Texas from 2003 to 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 United States Senate election in Alabama</span>

The 2020 United States Senate election in Alabama was held on November 3, 2020, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Alabama, concurrently with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states, elections to the United States House of Representatives, and various state and local elections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 United States Senate election in Michigan</span>

The 2020 United States Senate election in Michigan was held on November 3, 2020, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent Michigan. It was held concurrently with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the United States Senate, elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cambridge Analytica</span> 2013–2018 British political consulting firm

Cambridge Analytica Ltd. (CA), previously known as SCL USA, was a British political consulting firm that came to prominence through the Facebook–Cambridge Analytica data scandal. It was started in 2013, as a subsidiary of the private intelligence company and self-described "global election management agency" SCL Group by long-time SCL executives Nigel Oakes, Alexander Nix and Alexander Oakes, with Nix as CEO. The well-connected founders had contact with, among others, the British Conservative Party, royal family, and military. The firm maintained offices in London, New York City, and Washington, D.C. The company closed operations in 2018 in the course of the Facebook–Cambridge Analytica data scandal, although firms related to both Cambridge Analytica and its parent firm SCL still exist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Social media in the 2016 United States presidential election</span>

Social media played an important role in shaping the course of events surrounding the 2016 United States presidential election. It facilitated greater voter interaction with the political climate; unlike traditional media, social media gave people the ability to create, comment on, and share content related to the election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 United States Senate election in Montana</span>

The 2018 United States Senate election in Montana was held on November 6, 2018, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Montana, concurrently with other elections to the United States Senate, elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 United States Senate election in Ohio</span>

The 2018 United States Senate election in Ohio took place November 6, 2018. The candidate filing deadline was February 7, 2018; the primary election was held May 8, 2018. Incumbent Senator Sherrod Brown—the only remaining elected Democratic statewide officeholder in Ohio at the time of the election—won his reelection bid for a third term, defeating Republican U.S. Representative Jim Renacci in the general election. This was one of ten Democratic-held Senate seats up for election in a state won by Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 United States Senate election in Texas</span>

The 2018 United States Senate election in Texas was held on November 6, 2018, along with other elections to the United States Senate and elections to the United States House of Representatives in additional states. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Ted Cruz won re-election to a second term defeating Democratic candidate Beto O'Rourke. The primary for all parties was held on March 6, 2018, making it the first primary of the 2018 season. As Cruz and O'Rourke both won majorities in their primaries, they did not participate in the May 22 runoff primary that was held for some nominations in Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 United States Senate election in Virginia</span>

The 2018 United States Senate election in Virginia took place on November 6, 2018, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the Commonwealth of Virginia, concurrently with other elections to the U.S. Senate, elections to the United States House of Representatives, and various state and local elections. Incumbent Democratic Senator Tim Kaine, who had been his party's unsuccessful nominee for vice president two years earlier, was re-elected to a second term in office, winning this seat by the largest margin since 1988. This was the first election since 1994 that anyone had been re-elected to this seat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 United States Senate election in West Virginia</span>

The 2018 United States Senate election in West Virginia took place on November 6, 2018, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of West Virginia, concurrently with other elections to the United States Senate, elections to the United States House of Representatives, and various state and local elections. This was one of ten Democratic-held Senate seats up for election in a state won by Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 United States Senate election in Wyoming</span>

The 2020 United States Senate election in Wyoming was held on November 3, 2020, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Wyoming, concurrently with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Cynthia Lummis defeated Democrat Merav Ben-David by more than 46 percentage points, becoming the first female U.S. Senator from Wyoming and succeeding fellow Republican Mike Enzi, who did not run for reelection. This was the first open Senate seat since 1996 where Enzi was first elected. The Democratic and Republican party primary elections were held on August 18, 2020. This was the first time since 1996 that Democrats won any county for this seat. Enzi died aged 77 on July 26, 2021 from injuries in a bicycle accident less than seven months after his retirement from the Senate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 United States House of Representatives elections in Nevada</span>

The 2020 United States House of Representatives elections in Nevada was held on November 3, 2020, to elect the four U.S. representatives from the state of Nevada, one from each of the state's four congressional districts. The elections coincided with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the Nevada Senate and various state and local elections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 United States Senate special election in Mississippi</span>

The 2018 United States Senate special election in Mississippi took place on November 6, 2018, in order to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the state of Mississippi. On April 1, 2018, a U.S. Senate vacancy was created when Republican senator Thad Cochran resigned due to health concerns. Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant appointed Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith to fill the vacancy. Hyde-Smith sought election to serve the balance of Cochran's term, which was scheduled to expire in January 2021.

In the 2010s, personal data belonging to millions of Facebook users was collected without their consent by British consulting firm Cambridge Analytica, predominantly to be used for political advertising.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John James (Michigan politician)</span> American politician and businessman (born 1981)

John Edward James is an American politician, businessman, and veteran serving as the U.S. representative for Michigan's 10th congressional district since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, he was its nominee for U.S. Senate in 2018 and 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NationBuilder</span>

NationBuilder is a Los Angeles based technology start-up that develops content management and customer relationship management (CRM) software. Although the company initially targeted political campaigns and nonprofit organizations, it later expanded its marketing efforts to include other people and organizations trying to build an online following, such as artists, musicians and restaurants. The software uses voter data such as names, addresses and other information, such as previous voting records in the case of political campaigns, to allow users to centralize, build and manage campaigns by integrating various communication tools like websites, newsletters, text messaging and social media channels under one platform.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2024 United States Senate election in Ohio</span>

The 2024 United States Senate election in Ohio will be held on November 5, 2024, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the state of Ohio. Primary elections took place on March 19, 2024. Incumbent Democrat Sherrod Brown is seeking a fourth term in office, while the Republican Party nominated former car dealer Bernie Moreno. This race is one of two 2024 U.S. Senate races in which Democratic senators are seeking re-election in states where Republican Donald Trump won both the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections. Brown's re-election is considered essential for Democrats' chances to retain the Senate majority in 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 United States Senate election in Nevada</span>

The 2022 United States Senate election in Nevada was held on November 8, 2022, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Nevada. Incumbent Democratic senator Catherine Cortez Masto won re-election to a second term, narrowly defeating Republican challenger Adam Laxalt. Nevada's election results were slowed due to state law that allowed voters to submit mail-in ballots until November 12, and allowed voters to fix clerical problems in their mail-in ballots until November 14, 2022. No Republican has won this specific U.S. Senate seat since Adam Laxalt's grandfather Paul Laxalt won a second full term in 1980.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Oklahoma</span>

The 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Oklahoma were held on November 8, 2022, to elect the five U.S. representatives from the state of Oklahoma, one from each of the state's five congressional districts. The primary elections for the Republican. Democratic, and Libertarian parties' nominations took place on June 28, 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donald Trump–TikTok controversy</span> 2020–2021 event

In 2020, the United States government announced that it was considering banning the Chinese social media platform TikTok upon a request from then-president Donald Trump, who viewed the app as a national security threat. The result was that TikTok owner ByteDance—which initially planned on selling a small portion of TikTok to an American company—agreed to divest TikTok to prevent a ban in the United States and in other countries where restrictions are also being considered due to privacy concerns, which themselves are mostly related to its ownership by a firm based in China.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Warren, Christina (August 22, 2016). "Amazingly, Donald Trump's New App Is Not a Joke". Gizmodo . Retrieved October 20, 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Singer, Natasha; Confessore, Nicholas (October 20, 2018). "Republicans Find a Facebook Workaround: Their Own Apps". The New York Times . ISSN   0362-4331.
  3. Timm, Jane C. (August 31, 2016). "New Trump app wants you and your data". NBC News . Retrieved October 20, 2018.
  4. Chmielewski, Dawn (March 11, 2016). "Security Flaws Found (And Fixed) in Cruz Campaign App". Recode . Retrieved October 20, 2018.
  5. Lomas, Natasha (July 30, 2018). "One more thing re: 'privacy concerns' raised by the DCMS fake new report". TechCrunch . Retrieved October 20, 2018.
  6. "The NRA Has a Secret Weapon to Fight Gun Control: A Powerful App". AdAge . March 1, 2018. Retrieved October 20, 2018.